Starter Villain

Charlie Fitzer, a 32-year-old divorced former business reporter turned substitute teacher, goes about his morning routine, tuning into the news as he prepares for the day ahead. Suddenly, the somber announcement of billionaire Jake Baldwin's passing echoes through his home. Jake, the owner of North America's third-largest chain of parking structures, has passed away after battling pancreatic cancer. The news shocks Charlie—the deceased magnate was his estranged uncle.

The memory of Jake's last communication with Charlie floods back—an enigmatic gesture at Charlie's wedding. Though Jake did not attend the ceremony, his gift of berry spoons, accompanied by a cryptic note reading "3 years 6 months," foretold the duration of Charlie's ill-fated marriage to Jeanine (10). After a brief consultation with Hera, his orange-and-white former stray cat, Charlie reluctantly tears himself away from his thoughts, hastening to his scheduled appointment.

Arriving to meet with Belinda Darroll, a former classmate now employed at Barrington First National Savings and Loan, Charlie hopes to discuss his ambitious business loan application. Seeking $3.4 million to acquire McDougal's Pub, with his childhood home pledged as collateral, Charlie faces an uphill battle. Complications arise as Belinda probes into the details. Charlie, desperate to secure the loan, fabricates claims that his siblings—beneficiaries of the trust administering his childhood home—have consented to its use as collateral.